DOE turns uranium to solar

Those big piles of radioactive waste have long been the bane of communities where uranium mining and milling tailings serve as a dirty reminder of the atomic era. Now, one of those piles in Colorado is going to lend itself to a solar project.

The Department of Energy Legacy Management program is seeking bids to put solar collectors on top of the 42-acre tailings pile southwest of Durango. DOE figures there is enough space on the pile to create enough solar energy to power about 1,000 homes. A DOE spokeswoman said 14 entities have expressed interest in bidding to carry out this unusual project.

It’s not unheard of to make lemonade out of lemons when it comes to radioactive waste. DOE has also turned some tailings sites into grazing lands or hay fields around the country. In the future, other DOE-managed sites in Colorado have the potential to house solar collectors or be remade into greener pastures for livestock.

Stay tuned. DOE hopes work on turning Durango’s tailings pile to solar could begin as soon as March.

Nancy has been covering the diverse news of Western Colorado for three decades, since she migrated to the mountains from the plains of Nebraska. For the past 13 years, she has been a staff writer for The Denver Post, working from a bureau office in Grand Junction. In her spare time, she's been completing a Spanish Literature degree at Mesa State College in Grand Junction and continuing her quest to bike every pass in Colorado.